NFL

– Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft told reporters Wednesday that negotiations with QB Tom Brady are now “cooking.” Former Patriot WR Troy Brown predicted Brady would be signed before Thursday’s preseason opener. It’s clear that progress is being made. PFT’s Gregg Rosenthal sets the odds at 80-20 that Brady will have a new contract before the start of the regular season.

– According to the NY Daily News, the Jets and CB Darrelle Revis both have 10-year contract proposals on the table, but the sides are $40M apart – the Jets have had a 10-year/$120M offer “on the table for months,” but Revis’ camp is asking for $160M. The $40M doesn’t even include signing bonuses and guaranteed money — it’s “total compensation.” No wonder Woody Johnson’s gut feeling is that Revis won’t play in 2010.

Jets’ GM Mike Tannenbaum promised Tuesday that the team will not entertain trade offers for Revis. As Bill Plaschke said on ESPN’s PTI Tuesday, trade rumors would follow “stalemate” claims, and something will probably get worked out before the season. The Ravens were rumoured to be interested, but it doesn’t look like anything will happen.

– Colts’ C Jeff Saturday (loose bodies in knee) has undergone arthroscopic surgery and has begun rehab. Him timetable is unknown.

– Former Bucs’ LB Derrick Brooks has announced his retirement from football. Brooks, 37, couldn’t find a taker for the 2009 and 2010 seasons after a release from the Bucs two Februaries ago and has been working SIRIUS NFL Radio since. Brooks’ resume has Canton written all over it – he played 14 seasons, making the Pro Bowl in all but three of them. Brooks didn’t miss a single game in his career, and retires as the Bucs’ all-time leader in games played. The 5-time 1st-team All Pro will be in the mix as a 1st-ballot Hall of Famer.

– According to Yahoo! Sports, Patriots’ WR Wes Welker (ACL, shoulder) is hustling back from ACL surgery because he wants a new contract from the Patriots. An unnamed player said, “I think he’s crazy. He wants a new deal, and the Patriots have Julian Edelman lined up as his replacement. If I were Wes, I wouldn’t even consider coming back until October.” Welker refused to be drawn in, responding, “I’ve got two years left on my deal. I’m just here to play ball. I just worry about doing my job and let everything else take care of itself.”

– The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports a “growing feeling” in Minny that Vikings’ WR Sidney Rice “isn’t rushing back” from his hip injury partially due to unhappiness with his contract situation. Rice, represented by Drew Rosenhaus, will make $550K in the final year of his rookie deal. He’s earned a payday after recording 1,312 yards last season, but the Vikes obviously want to make sure he can do it again. Plus, future contacts are uncertain with the new CBA.

– According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Saints believe the knee injury sustained by RB Lynell Hamilton Wednesday morning is a torn ACL. Hamilton has an extensive history of major knee injuries dating back to San Diego State, so this could be a career-threatening situation. Pierre Thomas now has a much stronger chance to take over goal-line duties.

– Titans’ LE William Hayes (MCL sprain) is expected to miss 2-to-6 weeks. The recovery timetable puts Hayes’ status for opening day in jeopardy.

NBA

– ESPN’s Chad Ford is reporting that a 4-team blockbuster trade is being seriously discussed on Wednesday. F Trevor Ariza would be sent to the Hornets, F Courtney Lee would join the Rockets, G Darren Collison and G James Posey would go to the Pacers, and F Troy Murphy would go to the Nets. Collison would be the biggest winner in this scenario, as he would start at point guard for the Pacers, while Murphy would likely limit the development of Derrick Favors in New Jersey, as well as take his starting job. Stay tuned.

– The Raptors have acquired G Julian Wright from the Hornets for G Marco Belinelli.

– Heat’ F LeBron James said on his Twitter account Tuesday that he will not forget all the negative things said about him over the summer. “Don’t think for one min that I haven’t been taking mental notes of everyone taking shots at me this summer. And I mean everyone!” This was shortly after he met with a New York rabbi with South Florida ties. The rabbi, Yishayahu Yosef Pinto, is “a man known around New York as the rabbi to the business stars.” LeBron reportedly paid him around six figures for the meeting.

– The Celtics have waived F Rasheed Wallace, clearing the way for his retirement. Sheed was a character during his career to say the least, becoming infamous for his vulgar language and poor behaviour both on and off the court, as well as league-leading technical foul counts.

– The NBA has released the full 2010-11 schedule, which includes 29 national television appearances for the Heat. Miami kicks off the season against the Eastern Conference champion Celtics in Boston. Their first home game is against the Magic, and they have a Christmas Day affair against the Lakers. The Heat will sellout games well in advance, so be sure to buy your tickets months ahead of time.

MLB

– Mets’ OF Carlos Beltran has cleared waivers. Beltran is set to earn $18.5M next season and possesses a full NTC. The 33-year-old entered play Tuesday with a .195/.300/.312 batting line since returning from the DL after the All-Star break. He has no trade value right now and isn’t going anywhere, at least until the offseason.

– The Dodgers have placed Rafael Furcal (back) on the 15-day DL. Furcal hasn’t played in over a week now, so if he isn’t making progress, this had to be done. Since he’ll go on the DL retroactively, he’ll be eligible to return early next week.

– Rangers’ 2B Ian Kinsler (groin) isn’t likely to return from the DL until the end of the month at the earliest. Kinsler underwent an MRI on Tuesday which showed some improvement, but there was also some inflammation. He probably won’t take swings for at least another week. The best-case scenario is that he’s back before the end of the month, but GM Jon Daniels said it won’t be until September.

– The Dodgers have released OF Garret Anderson.

NHL

– The Blackhawks have re-signed D Jordan Hendry to a 1-year contract. Hendry posted career-bests of two goals, six assists and eight points over a career-high 43 games for Chicago last season. He played in 15 postseason games without scoring during the Blackhawks run to the Stanley Cup title.

WWE

– At Tuesday’s WWE SmackDown tapings, it was announced that new Intercontinental champion Dolph Ziggler will defend against Kofi Kingston. With that match set, the following is the updated line-up for WWE’s SummerSlam 2010, taking place this Sunday, August 15.

Elimination Tag Team Match
Team WWE (John Cena, Bret Hart, R-Truth, John Morrison & ???) vs. The Nexus (Wade Barrett, Skip Sheffield, Michael Tarver, Heath Slater, Justin Gabriel, Darren Young and David Otunga.

WWE Championship Match
Sheamus (c) vs. Randy Orton

World Heavyweight Championship Match
Kane (c) vs. Rey Mysterio

WWE Divas Championship Match
Alicia Fox (c) vs. Melina

WWE Intercontinental Title Match:
Dolph Ziggler (c) vs. Kofi Kingston

3-on-1 Handicap Match
Big Show vs. The Straight Edge Society (CM Punk, Luke Gallows and Joey Mercury)

– This week’s episode of Raw, the “go home” show before Sunday’s SummerSlam PPV, did a 3.3 cable rating and averaged 4.6M viewers.  The show did hours of 3.23 and 3.45.

– WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was interviewed this week by the The UK Sun. Here are some highlights of what Austin said about:

WWE’s PG Product: “You will hear wrestling fans all over the world groan when they hear me say this but I think WWE is doing the right thing. Cena is leading the way now. It is a PG flavored WWE theme and I think it’s great for the longevity and the growth of their product in today’s world.”

Why MMA Is Taking Older Viewers From the WWE: “UFC interviews are based on a shoot and they are non-scripted. Those guys out there are trying to sell tickets for a fight and they talk accordingly. It’s a serious product that’s in the ring. Wrestling is supposed to be that serious product in the ring as well. That’s not to say that you can’t laugh, smile, and have some humor in there, but you don’t want to do slapstick Three Stooges comedy while you’re trying to draw main event money at a big PPV.”

Whether They Pushed Things Too Far in the Attitude Era: “I remember one time Vince came up to me, I was flipping the middle fingers and all that. Vince said ‘Steve, we were wondering if you could come up with a different hand signal than the middle fingers. Something that everyone watching could do.’ I guess it’s not so politically correct for a six-year-old kid to throw up the middle finger. I said, ‘No. I’m going to be who and what I am.’ And Vince kind of said, ‘Okay’ – or at least the ratings and the merch sales said ‘okay.’ So that’s the direction we went with the WWE, and everybody else followed suit.”

– WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog once again at JRsBarBQ.com. Here are some highlights of what JR said about:

Missing SummerSlam: “Because of the short work day re: West Coast time this Sunday and with Summer Slam starting in LA at 5 Pacific, I won’t be traveling to the event. I will watch it on PPV from the old, La-Z-Boy and, like any die hard fan, expect plenty of bang for my PPV dollar in the form of surprises, shockers, and stout bouts. “

Brock Lesnar’s Next Fight: “Brock’s next fight vs. Cain Velásquez is going to be massive and likely will garner over 1M PPV buys. Velásquez, the Hispanic superstar, has a spotless record and according to Herschel Walker is one of the best conditioned athletes on the planet. At 240, Cain is built to go 25 minutes if necessary. I’m still a solid, Lesnar guy but even those close to Brock know that this fight will be a huge challenge for the UFC Heavyweight Champion. The good news for Lesnar fans, based on my past relationship with the former Golden Gopher, is that Brock loves a challenge. He actually thrives on them. “

SummerSlam Main Event: “It will be interesting to see what bout closes the show Sunday. my money is on the Team WWE vs. Nexus tag. That bout has gotten by far the most significant, TV time.”

WWE’s New “All Stars” Video Game: “We recorded over 400 lines of copy in a little over two hours today for the WWE All Stars video game. I really feel that THQ and WWE will field a hit with this concept. It’s a fantasy bookers dream and will be out prior to WM27 in Atlanta sometime in early 2011.”

– As reported over the weekend, ROH World Champion Tyler Black has reportedly agreed to a developmental deal with WWE. There is talk that Black will go to FCW and then be one of the featured talents on NXT Season 3.

– Former WWE CEO Linda McMahon won the Republican US Senate Primary in Connecticut on Tuesday night, taking almost 50% of the vote. She will now have to face Democrat Richard Blumenthal in November with the winner getting a US Senate seat for that state. Linda released the following statement after her victory last night:

“Tonight, I am honored to have earned the support of Republicans around Connecticut. Since I entered this race eleven months ago, we have crisscrossed this great state and attended over 660 meetings and events, where I have had the opportunity to hear from voters and better understand their issues and concerns. And unlike someone else in this race, I didn’t need to fly to Vancouver to do it. I understand that people are hurting because I see it all around this state. And I know what that feels like because I’ve been there before.

“This election is about jobs. The American Dream is threatened, but Washington continues its reckless spending, massive debt, and tax increases. Washington is suffocating small businesses and killing jobs. This is not only threatening our well-being, but also the well-being of our children and grandchildren. It’s time for something different.

“I’m honored to have earned my Party’s nomination, and I am determined to lead our Party to victory in November.”

McMahon spoke to CNN.com about whether her Democratic opponent will use her wrestling past against her.

“As my opponents talked more and more about the WWE and issues that may have been relative to programming content …instead of focusing on the issues, I talked about tissues and continued to gain momentum,” McMahon told CNN Wednesday morning.

“If my opponents want to talk about soap opera content instead of focusing on issues, I will win again in November,” she added.

Democrats have already drawn attention to WWE’s controversial programming and the countless wrestler deaths in recent years. Linda says it’s more important to focus on what WWE is doing today to protect its workers.

“The men and women that perform at WWE really are the primary assets of the WWE. And we want to protect them at all costs,” she said. “Doctors that travel with them…trainers that travel with them. We have a very comprehensive drug testing program. Let’s look at where WWE is today.”

VoV

Marc Valeri – captaincharisma@hotmail.com
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NFL

– QB Brett Favre (ankle) began to inform Vikings officials Monday night he will not return for his 20th season, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune and Jay Glazer of FOX. Favre reportedly told teammates and coaches that his ankle has not responded and he doesn’t plan to play this year. Favre is expected to issue a press release later Tuesday and the team hopes he changes his mind. It is, however, early August, which gives Favre plenty of time to change gears once the Vikings have begged enough. He also said this last season, too. Stay tuned.

– SI.com’s Don Banks reports that two of the three hip specialists that Vikings’ WR Sidney Rice (hip) consulted this offseason recommended he undergo surgery. Banks says that the doctors who favoured surgery didn’t deem it “absolutely necessary,” but passes along “some building skepticism” at Vikings camp after visiting Mankato over the past few days. Banks suggests that Rice’s decision to bypass surgery may be contract-related, as his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, is hoping to secure Rice a long-term deal.

– The Bengals have signed rookie TE Jermaine Gresham, the No. 21 overall pick, to a 5-year/$15.8M contract with $9.6M guaranteed. He’s expected to step in with the first-team offense immediately after being listed as the Bengals’ starting tight end on their depth chart to open camp.

– Bills’ GM Buddy Nix said Monday that the team will not release LB Aaron Schobel. “He will remain on our Reserve/Did Not Report list until he makes a decision about what he wants to do. Whether it’s retire or if he might want to play somewhere else.” The Bills won’t give up their best pass rusher for nothing – a trade is the likeliest scenario, but Schobel will need to re-work his contract, as he’s due a $6M salary this year.

NHL

– According to the Philadelphia Daily News, the Flyers are not interested in signing UFA G Antti Niemi. Philadelphia already has 3 goalies signed between 2 spots.  If Leighton falls back to Earth after a stunning 2009-10 season, then the Flyers might have a huge problem next season.

– F Mike Modano is expected to sign with the Red Wings on Thursday. Detroit offered Modano a 1-year/$1.25M contract in July, but Modano needed some time to decide his future. If Modano signs with the Red Wings, he’ll serve as the team’s third line centre.

– Panthers’ F David Booth (concussion) says he’s fully recovered from the concussion he suffered on March 25. Booth is looking to bounce back after sustaining two concussions last season. He’s started cardio in May and has intensified his off-ice workouts over the past two months. He plans to get back on the ice next week and travel to Florida in early September, ahead of the start of the Panthers’ training camp on September 18. If he can stay healthy next season, Booth is a candidate to surpass the 30-goal and 60-point milestones.

– The Sabres have signed D Shaone Morrisonn to a 2-year deal. Morrisonn, 27, recorded 12 points in 68 games last season with the Caps, but is know for his hits and blocked shots.

– The Sabres have placed F Tim Kennedy on waivers 4 days after he was awarded a 1-year/$1M deal in arbitration. Should Kennedy go unclaimed, the Sabres would have the choice to retain the player or buy him out at a third of his contract. Under the NHL’s collective bargaining agreement, teams cannot walk away from an arbitrator’s ruling lower than $1,611,180.

– The Ducks have signed D Andy Sutton to a 2-year/$4.25M deal. The 35-year-old appeared in 72 games with the  Islanders and Sens last season, collecting five goals and eight assists with 107 penalty minutes. He finished the regular season ranked second among all NHL players with 204 blocked shots and eighth among defencemen with 197 hits.

– The Islanders have bought of the final year of D Brendan Witt’s 2-year/$6M deal. The 35-year old defenceman now becomes a UFA. He was placed on unconditional waivers by Islanders’ GM Garth Snow on Friday and cleared them on Saturday. Witt had two goals and three assists in 42 games with New York last year and had a plus/minus of -18.

– F Glen Metropolit has signed a two-year contract with EV Zug in Switzerland. He scored 16 goals and 13 assists for the Canadiens last season.

NBA

– Heat’ F LeBron James has taken out a full-page ad in the Akron Beacon-Journal, thanking the city of Akron for their support through the years. James will hand out 400 bikes on Saturday in Akron and then join a mile-long ride on South Main Street. “Akron is my home, and the central focus of my life. It’s where I started, and it’s where I will always come back to. You can be sure that I will continue to do everything I can for this city, which is so important to my family and me.”

MLB

– A’s RHP Ben Sheets (right eblow) is scheduled to undergo surgery next week to repair a torn flexor tendon. Sheets finally decided to have the surgery after initially weighing whether to retire. “It will be a significantly long time again. Probably about 12 months, I think, then I’ll be back dominating.” He will be a free agent when he is finally recovered and could have trouble landing a decent contract because of his long list of procedures.

– The Braves have placed 2B Martin Prado (fractured right pinky) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 31. There was originally a hope that Prado would be able to avoid the DL with only a week to 10 days away from the diamond, but now he’ll be out of action for about the next two weeks.

– The Rays have placed RHP Andy Sonnanstine (left hamstring strain) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 23.

– The Nationals have transferred RHP Tyler Walker to the 60-day DL.

– The Cubs have placed RHP Carlos Silva (irregular heartbeat) on the 15-day DL.

– The Red Sox have placed OF Mike Cameron (strained abdominal muscle) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 31.

– Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that the Brewers have discussed a contract extension with 2B Rickie Weeks. The 27-year-old Weeks has batted .276/.375/.488 this year with 22 home runs, 67 RBI and seven stolen bases in 105 games.

TNA

– AJ Styles spoke with PWI Weekly. The highlights:

On Losing the Title to RVD: “I definitely didn’t understand it. For the life of me, I couldn’t understand it. I was very surprised that I would lose that title after holding it for so long, and to somebody who has basically been out of wrestling for over a year, and was coming in from WWE. And he should have been tired from wrestling a match before that. It was like I’m not the star I thought I was. I guess I’m just a guy in TNA.”

On the Changes TNA has Made: “I think there are mistakes that have been done. Things where you have to look at it and realize you have to take a step back. There were some people brought in that I don’t know that we needed, but there are other guys I think deserved a shot.”

On Being the Face of TNA: “I don’t know. People tell me that I’m the face, but sometimes I don’t feel like that. Don’t get me wrong. My peers definitely treat me with respect. I guess sometimes I wish that the higher-ups would come to me sometimes and ask, “Hey AJ, what do you think about this?”

On Being Different: “I don’t want to be like anyone else. I want to be AJ Styles. I want people to look at me, and have me be separated from everybody else.”

On his Favorite Feuds: “Christopher Daniels, Joe, and myself had some great interactions. Kurt and myself, that was a great little program we worked. And even Abyss, we had some incredible matches. The list goes on. It actually seems like working with everybody in TNA has been a favorite.”

Moving to Monday nights: “We never should have switched to Monday nights. We know that now. I wish that we would have just gone live on Thursday nights. The first one we did on Monday nights was huge, but Thursday nights was our night. There’s no mistake about it; Monday night is WWE’s. It’s theirs. We need to own Thursday nights.”

TNA’s decision to release Christopher Daniels: “It was very disturbing at first. I was very upset and confused,” he said. “I hope it’s not a long time (before he comes back), or they’ll bring Chris back.”

The state of the X Division: “We have to have more X Division matches in there. We have to let people see it. If it were up to me, we would have a little more wrestling and less talking. But, I’ve said that since the beginning.”

WWE

– The NY Post has a special feature looking at the new action movie “The Expendables” – which they’ve dubbed the ‘manliest movie ever.’ The action movie, which hits theaters in the United States on August 13th, features an all-star action hero cast of Sylvester Stallone, Randy Couture, Jason Statham, Steve Austin, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren and more. Austin was interviewed for the piece and had the following to say about:

His Favourite Action Movie: “I’d have to go with the first ‘Rocky.’ I saw that, got up the next morning, drank my eggs and was running down the street like an idiot.”

The Toughest “Expendable”: “The guys are all tough, but if you’re going to sit there and talk about a physical fight, I don’t think anyone will give you any argument that Randy Couture is that guy.”

His Last Real Fight: “I damn near got into a couple fights in the ring. When a guy snubs you a bit too hard, we call that a ‘potato.’ Depending on how good-natured you are, that dictates how many potatoes you want to take. When you’ve had enough, you send back what’s called a ‘receipt.’ Then it goes accordingly. Usually when you get a potato and send back a receipt, things settle down pretty fast.”

The Toughest Stunt He Did In The Movie: “My fight with Stallone. Being in a physical place with that guy and nothing but a brick and concrete floor with sand on it, and getting cut up and grinded. It was like rolling around on sandpaper. And on top of that, not wanting to throw the wrong punch and hit that guy, because that’s your star. It’s a moment of stress fighting with a guy like Sly, because I don’t care if you’re Steve Austin or not, you throw the wrong punch, you’re probably going to be gone.”

His Favourite onscreen kill: “I don’t even know. That’s a shame that I have to think about that. That only inspires me in my next endeavor to kill someone in such an extravagant fashion that we’ll have something to talk about next time.”

VoV

Marc Valeri – captaincharisma@hotmail.com
VoV – www.voiceofvaleri.com
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NBA

– From Alan Hahn’s twitter account, he covers the Knicks for Newsday

“Multiple sources are telling Newsday that LeBron James has decided to join Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami. The new Big Three is here.”

We have speculated that the three have had a pact to play together for some time, and this report is from a fairly reliable source in Hahn and Newsday. Later, ESPN’s Chris Broussard said the same thing via Twitter. There’s still a chance LeBron could change his mind at the last minute, but as of now, it looks like he’s going to Miami to play with Wade and Bosh. And don’t be surprised if this is enough to bring Pat Riley back to the bench next season.

In addition, the latest rumour swirling in Miami is that LeBron put down a deposit on a $49M estate here in Coral Gables and was seen around town yesterday.

Wow. If this is true (don’t take it as fact until he says it on ESPN), expect an Instant Classic ripping into this whole situation.

– AOL Fanhouse is reporting that F Shaquille O’Neal’s “first choice” is to win a championship with the Spurs. The Spurs are said to be interested in him as well.

– AOL Fanhouse reports that the Heat are trying to bring back G Jason Williams. J-Will won an NBA title with the Heat in 2006.

NHL

– Contradicting an earlier report, the Kings are not interested in signing UFA F Ilya Kovalchuk according to team governor Tim Leiweke. The problem the Kings have is that they will need to sign talented players like D Drew Doughty etc. to long-term deals soon, and they won’t have the cap space to do so if they give Kovalchuk the $8M+ annually that he’ll command on a long-term contract. The two sides were done with each other this past Sunday and then Kovalchuk’s agent “re-engaged” the team in conversations, the paper reports. The agent, Jay Grossman, sent a proposal to the team Wednesday that didn’t leave enough salary-cap space in the team’s budget to keep the younger players it has been grooming to be building blocks for the organization, according to the Times. “We really would love to add Kovi to our team, but not at the cost of our good young players. Dean (GM Lombardi) is trying here, but we know what we need in cap space going forward to keep our nucleus together. We can’t let one guy throw us into panic in a year or two. It is not about cash. It is about cap.” It looks like the Devils for Kovalchuk if he stays in the NHL, if not, the KHL. Stay tuned.

– The Wild have re-signed F Robbie Earl to a 1-year/2-way contract. Earl was looking for a one-way deal, but couldn’t find one with any NHL team so he re-signed with the Wild. He will get $550K when he is in the NHL and $105K as a minor leaguer.

NHL

– According to MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan, discussions are “heating up” between the Rangers and Mariners involving M’s ace LHP Cliff Lee. Add another team to the growing list. The Reds have reportedly exchanged names with the Mariners, the Twins may or may not have made an offer, and the Mets and Yankees are at least kicking the tires on Lee. Texas definitely has the prospects to make a deal work and the money exchanged should be a non-issue, even with the murky situation surrounding the Rangers’ exchange of ownership. Lee, who has fanned 89 batters and walked only six, is owed just about $4M.

– According to Newsday, the Mets “like the idea” of bringing Cubs’ LHP Ted Lilly back to the team. If they can afford it, the team would pick up the $6M left on his deal so that it wouldn’t have give up too much in the prospects department in order to get the 34-year-old with the 3-7 record and 3.76 ERA. Other Cubs being mentioned on the trade block include SS Ryan Theriot, 2B Mike Fontenot, INF Jeff Baker, 1B Derrek Lee, OF Kosuke Fukudome and OF Xavier Nady.

NFL

– LB Antonio Pierce has officially announced his retirement from the NFL and will be joining ESPN as an NFL analyst. The writing was on the wall for Pierce, who would have needed surgery on his neck in order to continue his playing career. The former undrafted free agent finishes his career with 687 tackles, nine sacks and seven interceptions. Pierce “will appear on NFL Live, SportsCenter, ESPNEWS, and 1050 ESPN New York, and he will provide weekly analysis on ESPNNewYork.com, ESPN’s home for New York sports news and information.” He said in a statement that “After nine years of having the privilege of playing in the National Football League, today I’ve decided to end my playing days…I am extremely excited about contributing my knowledge and experience in this new endeavor to the championship team at ESPN.”

WWE

– Multi-time WWE Women’s Champion Trish Stratus will be throwing out the ceremonial first pitch at Saturday’s Blue Jays/Red Sox game. The game takes place at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario.

TNA

– According to the Wrestling Observer, former WCW star “Taskmaster” Kevin Sullivan met recently with TNA President Dixie Carter about joining the company’s creative team. During that meeting, Sullivan presented an angle that involves a year-long main event storyline that would require them signing a top star who the company would likely have difficulty getting. In addition, TNA did, in fact, quietly part ways with writer Ed Ferrara a few weeks ago. Ferrara left a teaching position and was brought into the company several months ago around the time that Jim Cornette not-so-quietly parted ways with them, in large part due to that hiring. Of course, Ferrara also served as Vince Russo’s right-hand man for the WWF during the Attitude Era.

– One third of the Knockout Tag Team Champions, Velvet Sky, recently signed a three-year contract with TNA Wrestling. She also received a pay raise, bumping her salary from $300 per show to $600 per show. As a result, she is among the company’s top female earners.

VoV

Marc Valeri – captaincharisma@hotmail.com
VoV – www.voiceofvaleri.com
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NBA

– F LeBron James will end months of speculation on Thursday night when he announces where he will sign as part of an hour-long special, “LeBron James: The Decision, “airing live tomorrow night at 9 p.m. ET on TSN (encore at 12 midnight ET on TSN2). Stuart Scott hosts the one-hour special and is joined by NBA analysts Michael Wilbon and Jon Barry. James will announce his decision in a preliminary interview with Jim Gray followed by an extensive interview with Wilbon.

The Deseret News cites an ESPN executive as saying that LeBron James will make his announcement within the first 10 minutes of Thursday’s one-hour show. A bit surprising, as I expected the announcement to be drawn out until the final moments of the show, but it appears that we may find out right off the bat. Depending on what you believe, the Cavs, Heat, Knicks, Nets and Bulls were all potentially still in the hunt as of late Wednesday afternoon.

– The Bulls have signed F Carlos Boozer to a 5-year/$80M deal. It remains to be seen whether this will be the big move that lures F LeBron James to Chicago. Either way, the Bulls just upgraded their frontcourt dramatically. Meanwhile, the Deseret News reports that the Jazz may attempt to get something back for Boozer in a sign-and-trade package with the Bulls.

– The Celtics have re-signed G Ray Allen to a 2-year/$20M deal. The 9-time All-Star averaged 16.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game over 80 contests last regular season. His total was 16.1 points during the team’s playoff run, which ended with a Game 7 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals. During the championship series, Allen set an NBA Finals record by sinking eight three-point shots in a Game 2 victory.

– Heat beat writer Michael Wallace said on Twitter Wednesday that F Jermaine O’Neal is close to signing with the Celtics. Stay tuned.

– The Warriors are close to sending F Anthony Randolph to the Knicks in a sign-and-trade for F David Lee. This is the same deal that was rumoured to include G Monta Ellis, who is now out of talks. Of course, everything is contingent on F LeBron James. If he announces he’ll play anywhere but New York, the Warriors would possibly send Randolph, either F Ronny Turiaf or F Kelenna Azubuike, and F Vladimir Radmanovic in exchange for Lee. If LeBron signs with the Knicks, the deal will likely be killed. And frankly, we’d love to see Randolph play for Mike D’Antoni and the Knicks.

– The NBA salary cap for next season was set Wednesday at $58.04M, a higher number than projected. The cap goes into effect at 12:01 a.m. ET Thursday, ending the league’s moratorium period and allowing free agent contracts to be signed. It’s a slight increase from this season’s $57.7M cap, a surprise for teams considering what they were bracing for last summer. Teams were warned in a memo last July that the economic crisis could send the cap spiraling to somewhere between $50.4-53.6M, some $10M below what teams were once anticipating.

NHL

– Days after a report surfaced that F Ilya Kovalchuk was on the verge of signing a 7-year/$60M contract with the Devils, comes a report Wednesday in the LA Times that quotes Kings’ GM Dean Lombardi as saying that his team has “re-engaged” in negotiations. According to the Times, the Kings received a counter-proposal on Wednesday but it is so complex that the team is not expected to respond for at least a day. The Kings publically broke off talks with Kovalchuk on Sunday after reportedly making more than one offer without ever receiving a counter offer.

– G Evgeni Nabokov has signed a 4-year/$24M contract worth $6M annually with SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL. Nabokov, 34, leaves the NHL after posting one of his best seasons to date. In 2009-10 he went 44-16-10 with a 2.43 GAA and .922 SV% for San Jose.

– The Canucks will retire former captain F Markus Naslund’s jersey as part of the NHL team’s 40th anniversary this season. The team announced at the Canucks’ Summer Summit on Wednesday that Naslund’s No. 19 will be raised on December 11. His number will join those of Canucks legends Trevor Linden and Stan Smyl atop the newly named Rogers Arena. Naslund, a native of Ornskoldsvik, Sweden, played 11 seasons with the Canucks. He recorded 346 goals and 756 points with the club. His best season was in 2002-03, when he had 48 goals and 56 assists for 104 points.

– The Predators have signed F Sergei Kostitsyn to a 1-year/$550K deal.

– The Hurricanes have signed D Joe Corvo to a 2-year/$4.5M deal. The offensive D-man will make $2M in 2010-11 and $2.5M in 2011-12. Carolina dealt Corvo to Washington this past season at the trade deadline, but they are happy to have him back. GM Jim Rutherford said, “Joe has been a really good player for us over the last three seasons, and we feel that this solidifies our defense. We appreciate him working with us to get this deal done. He said that he really wanted to stay in Carolina and this commitment confirms that.” Corvo had a disappointing campaign in 2009-10. He struggled through injury and could not produce on the ice when he got the chance. Corvo collected just 18 points in 52 games with the Hurricanes and Capitals, while posting a minus-10 rating.

– The Leafs have signed D Brett Lebda to a 2-year/$2.9M deal worth $1.45M annually. Lebda had one goal and seven assists in 63 games with Detroit last season.

– The Sabres have signed G Patrick Lalime, 36, to a 1-year deal. Lalime was 4-8-2 for the Sabres last season with a 2.81 GAA and .905 SV%. On March 27, Lalime became the 66th goaltender in NHL history to record 200 career wins when he backstopped Buffalo to a 7-1 win over Tampa Bay at HSBC Arena.

– The Sabres have signed F Rob Niedermayer to a 1-year/$1.15M deal. Last year he had 22 points in 71 games with the Devils.

– The Capitals have re-signed D Jeff Schultz to a 4-year/$11M deal. The 24-year-old led the NHL last season with a plus-50 rating and had a team-high 129 blocked shots. He had three goals and career highs of 20 assists and 23 points in 73 games.

– The Avalanche have re-signed RFA D Brandon Yip to a 2-year deal. Yip was recalled by the Avs on Dec. 18 and finished with 11 goals and 19 points in 32 games. He was second on the team with two goals and two assists in six playoff games.

– The Red Wings have re-signed F Patrick Eaves to a 1-year deal. Eaves had 12 goals and 22 assists in 65 games for the Red Wings last season, his first with the franchise.

– The Penguins have signed D Andrew Hutchinson to a 2-way contract that will pay him $500K if he plays in the NHL next season. The 30-year-old Hutchinson has 135 games of NHL experience with Dallas, Tampa Bay, Carolina and Nashville, getting 12 goals and 26 assists.

– The Thrashers have re-signed F Eric Boulton. The 33-year-old had eight points and a team-leading 113 penalty minutes in 62 games last season.

– The Sabres have re-signed F Mike Weber to a 1-year deal.

– The Avs have signed F David Liffiton. Liffiton, 25, was Colorado’s first selection (second round, 63rd overall) in the 2003 Entry Draft, but was traded to the Rangers in March 2004. He spent the 2009-10 season with the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL, where he collected 20 points (5G,15A) and 118 penalty minutes in 72 games.

– The Sens have signed F Corey Locke to a 2-year/2-way contract. Locke played the majority of last season with New York Rangers’ AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolfpack. In 76 games, he scored 31 goals and 54 assists, but was held pointless in three appearances with the Rangers. Locke, 26, was a star during his junior career with the Ottawa 67′s. In three seasons there between 2001-04, Locke scored 132 goals and 312 points.

– The Sharks have signed free agent D Jay Leach to a 1-year/2-way contract. It will pay Leach $500K when he is in the NHL. Leach joined the Sharks last December after being waived by Montreal. He appeared in 35 games with San Jose and the Canadiens.

MLB

– Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com reports that the Reds and Mariners have exchanged names “in preliminary fashion” toward an LHP Cliff Lee deal. That’s a pretty big step. The Reds are hoping to shore up their starting rotation in an effort to maintain their surprising lead over the Cardinals in the NL Central. The Mariners, meanwhile, are thought to like Reds corner infield prospects Juan Francisco and Yonder Alonso. Lee has posted a 2.34 ERA, a 0.95 WHIP and an 89/6 K/BB ratio in 13 starts this season.

– Tyler Morris, the fan who fell from the upper deck trying to catch a ball during Tuesday’s game between the Indians and Rangers, remains in the hospital with a fractured skull and broken ankle. Morris, an off-duty firefighter, was reaching for a foul ball hit by OF Nelson Cruz in the bottom of the 5th inning when he fell nearly 30 feet from the upper deck and landed on several other fans seated below.

– The Pirates have acquired RHP Sean Gallagher from the Padres for cash considerations. Gallagher has spent four seasons in the majors and in the 2010 campaign he has appeared in 15 games and has an earned run average of 5.40. He has also pitched for the Chicago Cubs and Oakland Athletics and over 60 appearances, including 23 starts, he is 8-9 with a 5.57 ERA.

– The Rockies have placed 1B Todd Helton (sore back) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 5.

– The White Sox have placed RHP Jake Peavy (detached right shoulder muscle) on the 15-day DL. It sounds like the worst case scenario for Peavy, who left his start Tuesday against the Angels after suffering the injury in the second inning. The White Sox have yet to comment, but he could be out for over two months if there is indeed a detached muscle in his back. Peavy has a 7-6 record, a 4.63 ERA, a 1.23 WHIP and 93 strikeouts through 107 innings this season.

– The Cardinals have placed RHP Adam Ottavino (right shoulder sprain) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 4.

– The Dodgers have placed RHP Ronald Belisario on the restricted list.

– The A’s have transferred DH Eric Chavez and OF Travis Buck to the 60-day DL and have placed OF Conor Jackson (strained right hamstring) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 1.

– The Cubs have placed RHP Brian Schlitter (right shoulder impingement) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 3.

– The Orioles have placed RHP Kevin Millwood (strained right forearm) on the 15-day DL.

– The Brewers have placed RHP Yovani Gallardo (right oblique strain) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 5.

– The Reds have placed RHP Aaron Harang (lower back spasms) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 1.

– The Red Sox have placed RHP Clay Buchholz (strained left hamstring) on the 15-day DL retroactive to June 27.

– The Mets have placed 1B Fernando Tatis (right shoulder AC joint sprain) on the 15-day DL.

– The Astros have placed 1B Geoff Blum (loose bodies in right elbow) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 2.

– The Indians have placed OF Shin-Soo Choo (sprained right thumb) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 3.

– The Cardinals have placed OF Ryan Ludwick (left calf strain) on the 15-day DL retroactive to June 26.

– The Padres have placed OF Will Venable (lower back strain) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 2.

WWE

– Current plans call for SummerSlam to be built around the in-ring returns of Triple H and The Undertaker. Triple H would face Sheamus in a grudge match while Undertaker would face the perpetrator of placing him “in a vegetative state.”

Additionally, a six-person tag match pitting The Hart Dynasty against The Usos.

– Monday’s episode of Raw scored a 3.35 cable rating with 4.78 million viewers. The overall rating was up from last week’s 3.28 number. The first hour drew a 3.21 rating and the second hour grew to a 3.49.

– R-Truth (groin) is set to undergo surgery or extensive rehab and is expected to miss an extended amount of time.

– Below is the updated card for WWE’s Money in the Bank pay-per-view following Tuesday’s SmackDown taping in Atlanta, Georgia. At the event, both Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler earned spots in the SmackDown Money in the Bank Ladder Match while a Women’s Championship Match between Layla and Kelly Kelly was announced. Here is the updated card:

Steel Cage Match for the WWE Championship
Sheamus (c) vs. John Cena

World Heavyweight Championship Match
Rey Mysterio (c) vs. Jack Swagger

Raw Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Randy Orton vs. John Morrison vs. Evan Bourne vs. The Miz vs. Ted DiBiase vs. Chris Jericho vs. Edge vs. Raw star TBA
(Winner earns right to challenge the WWE Champion at any time, at any place, for up to one year)

SmackDown Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Big Show vs. Christian vs. Matt Hardy vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Kane vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Dolph Ziggler
(Winner earns right to challenge World Heavyweight Champion at any time, at any place, for up to one year)

Unified Tag Team Championship Match
The Hart Dynasty (c) vs. Jimmy and Jey Uso

WWE Women’s Championship Match
Layla (c) vs. Kelly Kelly

NFL

– CB Ed Reed has begun pushing the Ravens for a new contract. “I’m not making it a big deal. [But] I think it needs to be taken care of.” Reed has three years remaining on a six-year deal, and he lacks leverage with his retirement talk and the rising chance that he’ll miss a good chunk of the regular season following hip surgery. He “realistically” believes his return won’t come until “October, November and December.”

– The Eagles are reportedly interested in QB Troy Smith is a fallback option if they’re forced to release QB Michael Vick this summer. The Eagles still don’t seem likely to dump Vick, but they’re covering their bases in case further details emerge in the Quanis Phillips shooting investigation. If the Smith report is true, the team appears to have moved on from free agent QB Jeff Garcia as a possible alternative to Vick.

– The Jets have signed OT D’Brickashaw Ferguson to a 6-year/$60M deal with $34.8M guaranteed. It’s expected to be officially announced on Thursday. Ferguson was the fourth overall pick in the 2006 draft out of Virginia and has started every game for New York in each of his four NFL seasons.

TNA

– Former WWE star Jimmy Wang Yang cryptically noted on his Twitter account yesterday that he has signed a contract with an organization that he has wrestled for in the past.

“Signed a contract for my next big wrestling adventure. Give you guys a clue, I have wrestled (sic) for them in the past.”

It’s said that Yang signed with TNA Wrestling. He previously worked for the organization during its primitive stages in 2002.

VoV

Marc Valeri – captaincharisma@hotmail.com
VoV – www.voiceofvaleri.com
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NBA

– Chris Bosh and Dywane Wade said on ESPN Wednesday that they’ve both agreed to play for the Heat next season. This news broke earlier in the day, but now becomes a certainty. Both players said they won’t change their minds, and will now wait, along with the rest of us, for F LeBron’s decision tomorrow night. They also said that it “wasn’t about the money” and that they would take less to make room for LeBron or to help fill out the roster if necessary. They also said they have not decided on how many years they’ll sign for.

Miami came into the free-agent period with around $44M of cap space, not including $16M or so earmarked for Wade, thanks to years of avoiding just about any deal where money would have been committed for the 2010-11 season.

The Heat lack the salary-cap space to give Bosh, Wade and James all the maximum amounts they would be entitled to receive in their next contracts, so what would likely happen — again, if the scenario came together — was each player agreeing to take a bit less in base salary for 2010-11. If that happens, then they would probably receive contracts allowing them to become free agents again in three years if they wanted.

Miami does have the room to give Bosh and Wade max deals, although would still have to do some bargain-shopping to fill its roster for the coming year. As of Wednesday morning, Miami had only F Michael Beasley and G Mario Chalmers under contract for 2010-11.

The expectation around the Heat for months was that Wade would have a flirtation with free agency, then return to Miami for a 6-year/$125M, maybe a bit more or less depending on what the salary cap number for the coming 2010-11 season is.

VoV

Marc Valeri – captaincharisma@hotmail.com
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NBA

– G Dwyane Wade and F Chris Bosh are expected to announce they’ll be joining the Heat on Wednesday. As for F  LeBron James? Cleveland still looks like his destination, but that is not final. Bosh, who may or may not be part of a sign-and-trade deal, and Wade to Miami is not final either, but it sure sounds like they’ve both agreed to go play for Pat Riley. Bosh reportedly turned down the chance to go to Cleveland, but it does still sound like it’s possible that LeBron will join them in Miami. We’ll likely not hear much out of LeBron’s camp until Thursday night, when he’ll hold the world hostage for an hour on the World Wide Leader.

ESPN’s Chris Broussard, who broke the Bosh/Wade-to-Miami story, called the Heat the ‘clear frontrunner’ to land LeBron. Broussard also said he might change his mind in an hour, and that he still didn’t know if LeBron was going to Miami or not. Broussard has been as connected as anyone to what’s going on in free agency, and while nothing is set in stone, this is just another piece of LeBron news that is going to make the city of Cleveland lose sleep on Wednesday night.

Meanwhile, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports writes that the Cavaliers are “confident” that Bosh won’t play for them next season — but LeBron will. Wojo cites “multiple sources” but goes on to say that the “Cavs understand there are still looming threats to pry LeBron, but getting Bosh isn’t make or break on keeping LBJ.” There has been a palpable shift toward Cleveland lately, but until LeBron breaks his silence anything is possible.

On Tuesday night, ESPN reported that LeBron will announce where he’ll play next season during a one-hour TV special. James’ publicist is expected to release a statement later Wednesday.

– Thunder’ F Kevin Durant has agreed to a 5-year extension with the team. Durant, who is in Orlando watching the OKC summer-league team, announced the signing on Twitter Wednesday. “Exstension for 5 more years wit the thunder….God Is Great, me and my family came a long way…I love yall man forreal, this a blessing!” he wrote.

– The Heat have discussed a sign-and-trade with the Mavericks to acquire F Brendan Haywood in exchange for F Jermaine O’Neal and/or F Michael Beasley, according to the Miami Herald. Miami had a “productive” meeting with Haywood last weekend, and if they land him it could be a coup for the Heat — Chris Bosh should be satisfied that he wouldn’t be forced to play center in South Beach.

– ESPN reports that if LeBron doesn’t sign with the Knicks, the team will pursue Jazz’ F Carlos Boozer as a backup plan. The Heat have also expressed interest in Boozer.

– ESPN reports that G Raja Bell is interested in signing with either the Mavericks, Magic or Heat. Bell will wait until Bosh/Wade/LeBron have made their decisions before signing.

– Bucks’ GM John Hammond conceded that G Luke Ridnour is likely to leave Milwaukee via free agency. The Bucks can’t spend big money on a backup for G Brandon Jennings, and they’ve shown interest in G Travis Diener, a more affordable free agent. The Knicks have emerged as a strong candidate to sign Ridnour.

– The Suns are still pursuing F David Lee to replace F Amare Stoudemire.

– Vinny Del Negro has agreed to become the Clippers next head coach, though the deal has yet to be finalized. Del Negro beat out finalist Dwane Casey for the job, and takes over a roster full of intriguing young talent -  the only two players under contract older than 21 are Baron Davis and Chris Kaman. While panned for some of his play-calling (especially late in games), Del Negro did a fair job in a turbulent situation as a rookie coach in Chicago.

– Nuggets’ F Kenyon Martin (knee) has no timetable for a return. K-Mart spoke briefly after arriving at his basketball camp in the Rocky Mountains on Tuesday, and in his first public comments since his latest operation, Martin told The Associated Press his surgically repaired left knee was feeling better but that he had no idea when he’ll hit the NBA hardcourt again. “The timetable is when I’m ready. When the knee is ready. No timetable has been set. As far as coming back, when I’m ready, I’m ready. I’m doing all I can. I am rehabbing every day. Twice a day some days. So I’m definitely making progress.”

MLB

– The Tampa Tribune reports that the Rays and Mariners are rumoured to have a trade involving OF B.J. Upton and LHP Cliff Lee. Rays owner Stuart Sternberg told the world that he plans to be a buyer at the upcoming trade deadline and that the team is willing to spend some extra dough to add salary. “Our eye is really about making the postseason. Money won’t be an object. Players are always an object for us and the money will be an impediment, but we’ll figure it out if it makes all the sense in the world for this team.”

– A soucre confirmed to FOXSports.com Tuesday that the Yankees are “kicking the tires” on M’s LHP Cliff Lee. It sure sounds like GM Brian Cashman doesn’t want to give up any of his top prospects, which makes sense given that the Yankees are expected to attempt to sign Lee as a free agent this winter. The Twins, Rays, Cardinals and Mets have also shown interest in the Seattle southpaw.

– Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle hears that the Giants would prefer to acquire OF Corey Hart from the Brewers. There’s been some chatter that the Giants also have interest in 1B Prince Fielder — and they very well might — but Schulman writes that Hart is the one Brewers player they have their sights on. Hart is under team control for another season, but if the Brewers are serious about keeping Fielder, it’s unlikely they will be able to keep both. From the Giants perspective, though he won’t come cheaply, Hart will cost less in the way of prospects.

– According to Mark Castrovince of MLB.com, Indians’ OF Shin-Soo Choo “might not” need surgery on his right thumb. Slightly updated from what Paul Hoynes reported a short while ago, Choo will have his sprained right thumb in a brace for 7-to-10 days before being re-evaluated. If he doesn’t need surgery, he could be back sooner than the six-to-eight week timetable reported earlier.

– Yankees’ RHP Mariano Rivera (rest) has withdrawn from pitching in the All-Star Game next week. “I’ve been pitching hurt,” said Rivera. Don’t panic, as there aren’t many players that aren’t playing with various bumps and bruises right now. At 40 years old, Rivera could use the break.

NHL

– Russia’s Sport Express is reporting that the KHL’s SKA St. Petersburg is close to signing F Ilya Kovalchuk. Take this report with a grain of salt, but it certainly wouldn’t shock us if Kovalchuk ended up bolting for the KHL. He might have priced himself out of the NHL, as the competition for him has been sparse. It’s looking more and more like Kovalchuk’s options have been narrowed down to the KHL, the Devils, and the Islanders. The Devils have reportedly offered Kovalchuk a 7-year/$60M deal. Stay tuned.

– F Mike Modano said he will play for the Detroit Red Wings next season or not at all. “There isn’t any other team. It will be here or I’m not playing. I think it’s narrowed to that.” After spending his entire career within the Stars’ organization, GM Joe Nieuwendyk publicly stated that the Stars would not be offering him a new contract. Modano was born in Michigan and he’d have a chance to finish his career on a high note with the Red Wings. Detroit GM Ken Holland has already said that Modano would be pencilled in as the team’s third line center if he signed with them, a role that Modano is still capable of excelling at. If Modano decides to play one more season, he should score 15-20 goals and 30-40 points.

– The Canucks have a new name for their home next season: Rogers Arena. The rink had been known as GM Place since it opened in 1995. But the agreement between the Canucks and General Motors of Canada has expired and the team has signed a naming rights deal with the communications giant.

– The Capitals have re-signed RFA F Boyd Gordon to a 1-year/$800K deal. The 26-year-old Gordon, who did not file for salary arbitration by Monday’s 5 p.m. deadline, had four goals and six assists in 36 games last season. He missed time with back injuries, but won 61 percent of his faceoffs, which would have led the NHL had he played enough games to qualify.

– The Red Wings have re-signed F Drew Miller to a 1-year deal. Miller played 14 games with Tampa Bay before being waived. The Red Wings claimed him in November, and he played in 66 games for Detroit last season, scoring 10 goals and adding nine assists.

NFL

– The Titans and the player rep for RB Chris Johnson are reportedly working on a contract compromise that would ideally get the star tailback to report to training camp on time. The Titans certainly aren’t prepared to meet Johnson’s expectations of $30M in guarantees, but they’re at least trying to get creative with a “short-term solution” that would give him a “smaller bump in pay.” They could convert $2.5M in already earned escalators for 2012 to a signing bonus this summer. It’s a way to reward a extraordinary player without setting a precedent for ripping up contracts after just two seasons.

– Virginia Beach Police announced Tuesday that Eagles’ QB Michael Vick is not a suspect in the shooting of Quanis Phillips at Vick’s 30th birthday party. Police say they know who shot Phillips, but they’ve yet to charge the suspect because the victim and witnesses remain uncooperative. There are no other suspects, and the investigation is considered closed at this time. With Vick being cleared of suspicion, the Eagles are unlikely to take action barring a surprise plot twist.

– Rams’ DE O.J. Atogwe’s 5-year/$32M contract is essentially a guaranteed 1-year/$4.1M commitment by the Rams. St. Louis can void the remaining four years on Atogwe’s contract the day after the Super Bowl in February. If the team opts against the void, the $8M roster bonus in March can still be declined before Atogwe’s $3.5M base salary kicks in. The Rams will certainly balk at paying Atogwe $11.5M next season, so he’ll be back on the open market again.

– Bucs’ RT Jeremy Trueblood will not face charges after being arrested Tuesday night in Indiana for public intoxication and failing to cooperate. A drunken Trueblood made a nuisance of himself at a gas station, knocking items off the shelves and disrupting business, before leaving in a car driven by his mother. At a subsequent traffic stop, Trueblood became “belligerent and uncooperative” with police, leading to his arrest. He was released this morning, and prosecutors have opted against pressing charges. Trueblood doesn’t seem to have the past to warrant a suspension.

VoV

Marc Valeri – captaincharisma@hotmail.com
VoV – www.voiceofvaleri.com
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NBA

– The Knicks have signed F Amare Stoudemire to a 5-year/$100M deal. The deal can’t be signed until Thursday, after the salary cap for next season has been set. Stoudemire made an unofficial announcement at MSG, and the marquee showed him wearing a #1 jersey. This deal was essentially done days ago, and it’s the reason Knicks officials made one more pitch to LeBron’s representatives on Saturday. It remains to be seen whether the last-ditch effort made a difference.

– F Chris Bosh is expected to wait for F LeBron James’ decision before finalizing his next move. When Bosh does announce his decision, it will likely involve a sign-and-trade so that he can make the maximum amount of money. The Raptors are willing to facilitate such a deal as long as they’re getting back worthwhile assets.

– Nuggets’ F Carmelo Anthony is expected to acccept team’s 3-year/$65M contract extension, but he is still waiting to hear about the team’s attempts to improve the frontcourt. He’s also getting married this Saturday and “doesn’t have a timetable” to sign the deal, but until then, there’s always time for him to change his mind. Denver has trouble matching up with big frontcourts (think L.A.) even fully healthy, and neither F Nene nor F Kenyon Martin is a picture of health. There aren’t many available big men this summer, but the Nuggets’ brass better scheme a way to acquire one soon if they don’t want to risk losing Carmelo as a FA next summer. In other news, Melo will not play in the World Championships this summer.

Anthony will not be traded next season regardless of whether he accepts Denver’s contract extension, according to a “high-ranking Nuggets official.” “There is no way we are trading Carmelo Anthony. We’re 100% certain of that.” Melo is said to be “very serious” about accepting the offer, not least of all because he could lose millions under a new CBA.

– Multiple sources confirmed that the Warriors are looking into acquiring free agent F David Lee, a move that could require them to give up G Monta Ellis. Not sure why Golden State wants a high-priced big man when they already have F Anthony Randolph, F Brandan Wright and F Ekpe Udoh. Lee would have to agree to their terms and be part of a sign-and-trade, while the Knicks still haven’t ruled out pairing F Amare Stoudemire and Lee (a frontcourt that wouldn’t stop anyone defensively).

– ESPN reports that F Shaquille O’Neal, 38, has been contacted by the Hawks, Mavericks and Celtics. None of the conversations have gone too far and “no financial terms have been broached,” the site reports. Those three teams are all over the salary cap already so the most he can be offered, according to ESPN, is a mid-level exception at $5.8M annually.

Shaq currently has a 2-year deal on the table from the Hawks, starting at the mid-level exception of $5.8M, and would fulfill Shaq’s desire to play two more years on a championship contender. His presence would be huge for the Hawks, who have struggled against Dwight Howard in the playoffs, and could set off a chain reaction — Al Horford could move to PF and Josh Smith could be on the trading block.

The Hawks have been exploring the possibility of trading F Josh Smith as part of their summertime makeover, according to sources around the league. It’s not clear what the Hawks want in return, but they could try to package G Mike Bibby or G Marvin Williams with Smoove to bring back a top-notch PG.

– Yahoo! reports that Suns’ G Steve Nash will not ask for a trade out of Phoenix. A source tells Spears, “(Nash) likes the team chemistry in Phoenix and he is a confident guy no matter who he plays with. He’s looking forward to the challenge.” The Suns are still trying to tradeG  Leandro Barboso in order to save some money. Barboso makes $7.1M this coming season and then has a player option for $7.6M for the following year. The team has also replaced Amare with newly-acquired F Hakim Warrick.

– The Magic have signed G Chris Duhon to a 4-year/$15M contract on Tuesday. Duhon had three or four great months with the Knicks a couple years ago, but broke down after they ran him into the ground. He’s clearly not cut out to be a full-time starting point guard, but has proven to be a solid backup.

– Free agent G Raymond Felton is expected to meet with the Knicks and Heat this week, according to Fanhouse.com. Felton headlines a weak crop of free agent PGs, and has also drawn interest from the Pacers, Nets, Mavericks and Grizzlies. He’s not a pure passer and he shoots a low percentage, which made him something of a question mark with Charlotte, and explains why they’re not even trying to re-sign him.

– Yahoo! reports that the Nets “could get a frontloaded offer sheet” that the Bobcats wouldn’t match. The Nets will wait to see where LeBron, Wade and Bosh end up before going after the fallback plan. Thomas averaged 10.1 points and 6.1 rebounds for the Bobcats after getting traded at the deadline by the Bulls.

– Joe Dumars says he is not a candidate for a job with the Nets. Responding to reports that he could be a replacement for Rod Thorn, the Detroit president insisted Monday he doesn’t have “any interest in a basketball operations position with the Nets.” Dumars adds his priority is putting together a team to get the Pistons back on track next season. Thorn is leaving next week after 10 years as Nets president. GMs Jeff Bower of New Orleans and Sam Presti of Oklahoma City, and Nets vice president Bobby Marks are among the leading candidates to replace Thorn.

NHL

– According to a report, F Ilya Kovalchuk may be on the verge of re-signing with the Devils. The NY Post is saying that the UFA sniper is going to sign a 7-year/$60M contract with the Devils as soon as Tuesday. Kovalchuk’s agent, Jay Grossman, also announced on his Twitter account Monday that his client is “looking to make decision on his future today.”

– Retired hockey enforcer Bob Probert, as adept with his fists as with a stick in a 16-season career with the Red Wings and Blackhawks, died Monday after suffering chest pains while boating with his family. He was 45. “Bob lost the fight of his life this afternoon,” said Probert’s father-in-law, Dan Parkinson, a police officer who performed CPR before Probert was rushed to Ontario’s Windsor Regional Medical Center. Probert was on a boat in Lake St. Clair with his wife, children and in-laws when he “developed severe chest pains” Monday, family friend Rich Rogow told a Monday evening news conference at the medical center.

– The Blues have re-signed UFA D Carlo Colaiacovo to a 2-year/$4.25M contract. Colaiacovo collected seven goals, 32 points and a plus-8 rating in 67 games with the Blues last season. He wanted to stay in St. Louis despite receiving a few offers from other NHL teams.

– F Mike Modano is scheduled to be in Detroit on Tuesday to meet with the Red Wings’ brass. Modano is still contemplating retirement, but the Wings have displayed considerable interest in bringing him into their organization. “It’s a big decision, and I know it would be for them too, so we’ll talk about it and see if this works for both sides. I’m excited. I’m looking forward to hearing what they think.” Stay tuned.

– The Lightning have signed D Brett Clark to a 2-year/$6M deal worth $3M annually. Clark appeared in 63 games with the Avalanche in 2009-10, while posting 20 points and a plus-6 rating.

– F Nikolai Zherdev is reportedly interested in returning to the NHL. The Leafs were rumoured to have an interest in the enigmatic Russian winger, but they have denied that claim. The Sabres are another possible destination for Zherdev. He is looking for a multi-year deal worth a reported $4M per season. Zherdev posted 13 goals and 26 assists in 52 games with Atlant Mytischi in the KHL last season. Stay tuned.

– The Oilers have signed the #1 overall pick in the 2010 Draft, F Taylor Hall, to a three-year, entry-level deal. The deal is expected to be similar to the one that the New York Islanders gave to 2009 top pick F John Tavares. The deal is projected to have a base salary of $900K and bonuses could knock up his earnings to $3.75M per season.

– Jacques Demers is in hospital after undergoing surgery. A report says the former hockey coach has been bed-ridden for about a week with a stomach ailment. Demers’ office told Corus News that he is in an Ottawa hospital, where he is in stable condition and where he will be recovering for an unspecified period of time.

MLB

– Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com reports that the Phillies sent a scout to Mariners’ LHP Cliff Lee’s last start. Lee impressed, too, striking out 11 Tigers and allowing only one run in eight innings on Sunday afternoon. Fellow FOXSports.com writer Ken Rosenthal reported this weekend that the Phillies have legitimate interest in re-acquiring the left-handed Lee, and Morosi’s report only backs that up. Lee has a gorgeous 89/6 K/BB ratio, 2.34 ERA and 0.95 WHIP in 13 starts this season.

A source tells Jeff Fletcher of AOL Fanhouse that the Twins have offered prospect OF Aaron Hicks and prospect C Wilson Ramos to the M’s for Lee. That’s a pretty serious bid. In fact, it might be too much of a price to pay. Hicks, 20, was selected No. 14 overall in the 2008 First-Year Player Draft. He has a 792 OPS over parts of three seasons in the minor leagues. Ramos is perhaps the most expendable trade chip for the club thanks to the presence of C Joe Mauer. The 22-year-old catcher is batting just .208 with Triple-A Rochester this season, but has a .281 batting average over five seasons in the minors with decent pop and a fine reputation behind the plate. Sending Ramos makes good sense, especially if the M’s value a catcher as much as we hear they do. Adding Hicks to sweeten the pot would probably get the deal done, but it’s an awful lot for a rental.

According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Reds have spoken to the M’s about acquiring Lee. Meanwhile, SI reports that the Twins are having “interesting” talks that “have possibilities” with the Mariners about Lee. “Close to 15 teams” have asked about Lee, including the Rays, Phillies, Yankees, and Mets. The Enquirer reports that Cincinnati would probably need to give up Cuban prospect 1B Yonder Alonso and others in a package to get Lee. FOXSports reports that the Yankees, Twins, Mets, and Texas Rangers are the most actively involved in conversations with the folks in Seattle about Lee.

– FOXSports is reporting that the Phillies are considering trading OF Jayson Werth if it can’t perform well in these two series (Braves, Reds). If the Phils show that they can bring it, FOXSports sources say the team has already looked into getting O’s 1B Ty Wigginton or 3B Miguel Tejada. The site also reports that the team will pursue two big-name pitchers: M’s LHP Cliff Lee and D’Backs RHP Dan Haren.

– Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com reports that the Tigers have shown interest in D’Backs’ SS Stephen Drew. The question is will they fork over the prospects that it is going to take to land him. Drew is 27, under control through 2012 and boasts a strong bat at a position where such a thing is rare, and the Tigers are looking to upgrade.

– MLB.com reports that Orioles’ RHP Kevin Millwood is officially off the trade block. Millwood now has a 2-8 record and a 5.77 ERA. He’s earning $12M this season, the last of a 5-year/$60M deal.

– FOXSports reports that Buck Showalter is the leading candidate to take over the O’s managerial position. Former Indians manager Eric Wedge got a second interview with Baltimore on Friday, but the 54-year-old Showalter is thought to be the man for the job, the site reports. Bobby Valentine’s name was also in the hat early on but then he withdrew it when it seemed like he had the chance to go work with the Marlins.

– Tigers’ RHP Joel Zumaya (broken right elbow) is scheduled to undergo season-ending surgery to repair the fracture in his throwing elbow next Monday. The Tigers were hoping that Zumaya would be able to avoid going under the knife, but it’s no surprise given the gruesomeness of his injury. He was diagnosed with a non-displaced fracture at the tip of his elbow in late June and will have a screw inserted next week to stabilize the bone.

– Cardinals’ 3B David Freese (ankle) is aiming to return for the first game after the All-Star break. Freese hit the DL in late June with a sprained right ankle and should be great given another 10 days of rest. The rookie third baseman was batting .296/.361/.404 with four home runs and 36 RBI before the injury.

– Orioles’ LHP Mike Gonzalez (shoulder) is not expected to return until after the All-Star break. Gonzalez is scheduled to make three minor league rehab appearances this week, which will take him right up to the major league Midsummer Classic. He’s shown an improvement on the velocity of his fastball in recent outings and should resume his role as Baltimore’s closer within a week of activation.

– The Red Sox have placed RHP Clay Buchholz (hamstring) on the 15-day DL. He will miss the All-Star Game and will be replaced by Yankees’ LHP Andy Pettitte

– Brewers’ manager Ken Macha said Monday that RHP Yovani Gallardo (oblique) will not pitch in the All-Star Game. Gallardo was lifted from his start against the Cardinals on Sunday with a right oblique strain and the Brewers aren’t going to risk him in the Midsummer Classic. “Throwing in the All-Star Game? No. I’m saying that, best case scenario, he’s probably going to be doing no baseball activities for at least 10 days.” Sounds like he is headed for the DL.

– The A’s have placed OF Conor Jackson (strained right hamstring) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 1.

– The Mets have placed INF Fernando Tatis (right shoulder AC joint sprain) on the 15-day DL. Tatis is to undergo further testing at New York’s Hospital for Special Surgery on Tuesday.

NFL

– The Boston Globe is giving Patriots’ WR Wes Welker (ACL, shoulder surgeries) “a good chance” to be ready for Week 1. The Globe’s Albert Breer admits there’s still “a long way to go,” and that Welker is likely — at the very least — to open training camp on active/PUP. Should Welker come off the list before Week 1, he’ll be eligible to play in the season’s first seven games.

– NFL Network’s Mike Lombardi reports that the friction between RB Chris Johnson and the Titans is beginning to “thaw,” and predicts that Johnson will report to training camp in a timely manner. “I hear calmness on both sides,” says Lombardi, adding that “everything is moving in (the) direction” of the sides reaching some form of redone contract before August. This seems to mesh with Johnson’s recent patronage of the Titans’ practice facility.

– Free agent QB JaMarcus Russell was arrested Monday afternoon for possession of a controlled substance, said to be codeine syrup or “Sizzurp.” The arrest took place after an undercover investigation of Russell’s home. Booked at 4:22PM Monday, the former No. 1 overall pick was released “minutes later” after posting $2,500 bail. Already drawing scant interest on the free agent market, Russell won’t latch on with an NFL team anytime soon after this news. He is scheduled to appear in court next on July 20.

– The Chargers are not actively shopping WR Vincent Jackson nor are they interested in dealing him, a source tells ESPN’s Adam Schefter. It’s possible the Chargers are just trying to play hardball in the media here, but GM A.J. Smith isn’t one to mess around and Schefter isn’t a guy that gets played. Despite both a three-game suspension and a nasty holdout looming, the Chargers appear prepared to go down with the ship here. The pressure is now squarely on Jackson to blink first in this poker game.

WWE

– As announced on Raw, the Hart Dynasty will defend their Unified Tag Team titles against Jimmy and Jay Uso.

– Regarding the anonymous Raw GM, it’s not Steve Austin.

VoV

Marc Valeri – captaincharisma@hotmail.com
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NBA

– F LeBron James isn’t expected to announce his decision until at least Wednesday evening, when a three-day Nike camp in Akron ends. Many feel LBJ is still leaning towards re-signing with the Cavs. The Knicks also met with James’ representatives for a second time in Cleveland on Saturday, according to the NY Daily News. This may not mean much in the long view, but it’s a noteworthy event as LeBron’s decision looms just days away — possibly Wednesday evening but more likely Thursday.

– According to G Joe Johnson’s agent, Arn Tellem, JJ is set to re-sign with the Hawks for a maximum contract of about 6-years/$120M. Tellem confirmed Sunday in an entry he wrote for the Huffington Post website, in which he said Johnson “announced his intention to re-sign with the Hawks for six more years.” Tellem wrote that Johnson chose to remain in Atlanta over Chicago and New York, where he would have been reunited with Mike D’Antoni, his former coach in Phoenix. The Knicks tried to convince Johnson that if he signed with them he could make up lost salary with contract incentives and endorsements, but obviously their pitch didn’t work. JJ will rejoin a playoff-ready core in Atlanta, with a contract that won’t expire until he’s 35 years old. For the Knicks, missing out on Johnson means they’ll probably start targeting F Mike Miller.

– F Amare Stoudemire met with Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni on Sunday morning, as the two worked out whatever differences existed between them. D’Antoni also called Amare late last week to tell him how much the Knicks want him. It would be shocking if he doesn’t sign with New York at this point — he’s attending team owner James Dolan’s Fourth of July party, and has apparently been recruiting Spurs’ G Tony Parker and Nuggets’ F Carmelo Anthony.

NHL

– F Ilya Kovalchuk will reportedly not be signing with the Kings. GM Dean Lombardi said on Sunday afternoon that the highly sought after UFA would not be coming despite their best efforts to bring him on board. The Devils and Islanders are believed to be the front-runners at this time for his services. Stay tuned.

– Leafs’ GM Brian Burke is still looking to add a veteran defenseman to his roster via free agency. Although there is no word on who Burke is targeting, Andy Sutton, Willie Mitchell and Jay McKee could be on the Buds’ radar. If the Maple Leafs are successful in signing a veteran blueliner, it will certainly accelerate the Tomas Kaberle trade talks. Stay tuned.

– F Mike Modano said he will be patient in his search for a new club. “I really have been through this before, so it’s not that new. There’s a lot more texting now, but you still just try to ask questions and answer what they want. It’s a lot of waiting around, that’s the tough part.” Modano has had discussions with the Red Wings, but it may be tough for them to fit him into their salary structure.

MLB

– Twins’ C Joe Mauer, the overall vote leader, heads the group of AL All-Star selections. Justin Morneau, Robinson Cano, Derek Jeter, Evan Longoria, Josh Hamilton, Ichiro Suzuki, Carl Crawford and Vladimir Guerrero were also voted in as starters. The AL reserves include Miguel Cabrera, Dustin Pedroia, Victor Martinez, David Ortiz, Elvis Andrus, Vernon Wells, Jose Bautista, Torii Hunter, Ty Wigginton, Alex Rodriguez, Ian Kinsler and John Buck. Kinsler and Buck were injury replacements for Pedroia and Martinez, respectively. The AL pitching staff consists of David Price, Clay Buchholz, Jon Lester, Phil Hughes, Cliff Lee, Fausto Carmona, Trevor Cahill, CC Sabathia, Neftali Feliz, Mariano Rivera, Jose Valverde, Matt Thornton and Joakim Soria. The Final Vote will come down to Paul Konerko, Nick Swisher, Kevin Youkilis, Delmon Young and Michael Young.

Cardinals’ 1B Albert Pujols was again the leading National League All-Star vote-getter. Others that were voted as starters include Chase Utley, Hanley Ramirez, David Wright, Ryan Braun, Andre Ethier, Jason Heyward and Yadier Molina. The NL reserves consist of Martin Prado, Ryan Howard, Brandon Phillips, Omar Infante, Michael Bourn, Chris Young, Brian McCann, Adrian Gonzalez, Troy Tulowitzki, Scott Rolen, Corey Hart, Matt Holliday, Marlon Byrd and Jose Reyes. Phillips and Reyes were added as injury replacements for Utley and Tulowitzki, respectively, and Prado will start at second. Heyward might require an injury replacement, as well. Pitchers that were selected for the squad include Ubaldo Jimenez, Josh Johnson, Roy Halladay, Tim Lincecum, Adam Wainwright, Chris Carpenter, Yovani Gallardo, Tim Hudson, Evan Meek, Arthur Rhodes, Matt Capps, Brian Wilson and Jonathan Broxton. For the Final Vote, it will be between Joey Votto, Ryan Zimmerman, Carlos Gonzalez, Billy Wagner and Heath Bell.

– The D’Backs have released LHP Dontrelle Willis. In six games with Arizona, five as a starter, Willis was 1-1 with a 6.85 ERA. He struck out 13 and walked 27 in 22 1-3 innings.

– The Indians have placed OF Shin-Soo Choo (sprained right thumb) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 3.

– The Astros have placed 1B Geoff Blum (loose bodies in right elbow) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 2.

– The Cardinals have placed OF Ryan Ludwick (left calf strain) on the 15-day DL retroactive to June 26.

– The Padres have placed OF Will Venable (lower back strain) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 2.

– The Twins have placed 2B Matt Tolbert (contusion on right middle finger) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 1.

– The Red Sox have placed RHP Manny Delcarmen (strained right forearm) on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 1.

UFC

–  UFC Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar defeated Shane Carwin on Saturday night at UFC 116 by submission in the second round of the fight. Carwin came out strong in the first round, dropping Lesnar with a vicious uppercut and almost putting the champion away with a fury of ground and pound. Lesnar survived the round and came back strong in the second round, making Carwin submit from an arm-triangle choke. After the fight, Lesnar thanked referee Josh Rosenthal for not stopping the fight when he appeared to be in trouble. Lesnar said:

“He hit me pretty good, and I don’t know, I ended up there on the ground. I just had to go into survival mode and stay busy. I really have to thank the referee for allowing that thing to go on. I wasn’t hurt. I thought if I just kept moving — I could feel Shane’s punches getting less and less — and I thought, well, if I can get out of here then I’m just going to exert a lot energy. I realized there was [not a lot of time left], so I just tried to stay busy. He’s a beast. He definitely won the first round [laughs].”

Former WWE personalities Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Steve Austin, Jim Ross and Bill Goldberg were shown in attendence. Lesnar’s longtime friend Paul Heyman was also with Lesnar throughout the weekend. At the post-show press conference, UFC President Dana White announced that Lesnar’s next title defense will be against undefeated heavyweight Cain Velasquez. No date has been announced, but the fight is expected to take place later this year.

WWE

– According to WWE Magazine’s “Best of WWE” Special Issue, which was released last Tuesday, WWE Studios’ upcoming comedy film starring Paul “Triple H” Levesque will be released in theaters next summer. Also note, the magazine refers to the film as Inside Out, but it has since been changed to The Chaperone. The film is currently being filmed in New Orleans, Louisiana.

– R-Truth revealed in an interview with WWE Magazine that he has another entrance theme in the works which would be specifically performed at pay-per-view events.

“The new song is called “Right Time. It’s hip-hop with some metal guitars in it. The lyrics will encourage crowd participation, too. The song just talks about going through life, doing the right things and keeping your head up.

VoV

Marc Valeri – captaincharisma@hotmail.com
VoV – www.voiceofvaleri.com
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